It seems like there’s no end to the number of seemingly senseless products women can place in their vaginas, if this latest trend is anything to go by: glitter.
Like the highly controversial jade eggs that actress Gwyneth Paltrow pushed, or the recent hoopla regarding wasp’s nests, medical experts are cautioning women not to follow such fads, as they are more harmful than helpful.
A woman in Houston, Texas, came up with “glitter bombs” for vaginas, which she sold on her website, Pretty Woman Inc., under the name “Passion Dust Intimacy Capsules.” The suppositories sold out quickly, forcing the owner to shut down temporarily in order to fill all the orders, Popular Science reports.
Why is there a need for glitter down there? According to its manufacturer, Lola-Butterflie Von-Kerius, these pills release candy-scented sparkles. The New York Post reports that the website instructs to insert said glitter capsules “into the vagina at least one hour prior to having sexual intercourse.” They dissolve, releasing “sparkling candy-flavored passion dust” that makes sex “magically delicious.”
Von-Kerius makes these products out of her home, and has since become a viral sensation, with her site receiving half a million visits daily. She has “experience-based evidence” that her glitter pills are safe, because they contain cosmetic-grade glitter that is supposedly edible. She adds that the vaginal fluids are a “natural coating” for the glitter, meaning there will be no particles felt during sex. However, those with asthma could inhale the glitter and have an attack, she warns.
Dr. Jen Gunter, an obstetrician known for putting such trends under the microscope, points out that even is the product has cosmetic glitter, which is plastic, it could very well still be dangerous.
“Could the plastic be a nidus for bacteria? Sure. I’ve seen a nasty inflammatory vaginal discharge from sand so this could be a similar set up,” Gunter wrote. “Might the little flakes of plastic produce vaginal wall granulomas ? (A granuloma is walled off inflammatory mass produced by tissue in response to a foreign body). They could.”
She warned that healthy vaginal bacteria and natural lubrication protect from sexually transmitted diseases, so adding cosmetic products to the mix could have serious health consequences.
But Von-Kerius defends her products, saying, “It’s just for fun. You can see yourself shine and play with it all day.”
